Opportunist

//ˌɒpə(ɹ)ˈtjuːnɪst// noun

noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Someone who takes advantage of any opportunity to advance their own situation, placing expediency above principle.

    "James Milner's angled free-kick was headed on to the post by the tireless Bent and Lampard the opportunist was perfectly placed to stoop and head in from virtually on the goal-line."

  2. 2
    a person who places expediency above principle wordnet
Adjective
  1. 1
    taking immediate advantage, often unethically, of any circumstance of possible benefit wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
adventurerchancerchancercoconspiratorconniverconspirator

Example

More examples

"Tom's a money-grubbing opportunist."

Etymology

From French opportuniste, equivalent to opportune + -ist.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.